iPhone Sales

Apple surpassed multi-year leader Samsung to become the top selling mobile phone vendor in the US during the fourth quarter of 2012. Strategy Analytics estimates that Apple sold a whopping 17.7 million mobile phones for a record 34 percent market share. Samsung fell to second place with 16.8 million phones shipped in the same period, adding up to 32 percent of the US market.

According to NPD Group, the iPhone 5 was the top selling smartphone in the US during the last quarter, followed by the Samsung Galaxy S III. The iPhone 4S, iPhone 4, and Samsung Galaxy S II were in third, fourth and fifth place respectively. There's nothing like a new product launch right before the holidays to drive sales. The iPhone 5 made up 43 percent of all iPhone sales, and accounted for almost two thirds of all post-paid smartphones above $199.

Sometimes a promotion comes around that sounds too good to be true. If you're one of the millions of Americans who still has some last-minute holiday shopping to get done, there's a gift card deal ending today, Saturday December 22. Best Buy is selling iTunes gift cards at 20 percent off face value.

The discount applies to Apple iTunes gift cards purchased in Best Buy stores at denominations of anywhere from $15 to $100. The recipient can redeem the iTunes gift card for apps, books, movies, music and television shows and even spend the money on the Mac App Store.

Good news for iPhone 5 shoppers this holiday season. Your patience has paid off and now that the iPhone 5 has been out for a couple of months, retailers are starting to discount the price. Radio Shack is offering the iPhone 5 at $20 off full price, making the 16GB iPhone 5 only $179 with a two-year contract in stores.

Best Buy has also offered iPhone 5 shoppers a deal. Purchase the iPhone 5 from Best Buy and the company will give you a $25 Best Buy gift card for free. The physical gift card or e-gift card will be delivered to customers purchasing the iPhone 5 with a two-year service contract at Best Buy stores or online.

Apple has announced the next phase of its global iPhone 5 rollout. No less than 54 countries are on the list to receive the latest device before the end of this year. In a press release, Apple said the iPhone 5 will be available in South Korea starting on Friday, December 7th.

From there, it's on to two long lists of countries that will get the iPhone 5 on December 14th and December 21st. The iPhone 5 is already available in 47 countries, which means Apple will meet its goal of selling the iOS smartphone in over 100 countries before the end of 2012.

The iPhone 5 release has pushed Apple over the top. Regaining its lead for the first time since March, Apple's iOS smartphone sales are once again dominating the US market. According to Kantar World Panel, Apple is on track to surpass the previous high of 49.3% of smartphone sales seen after the iPhone 4S launch.

Second place Google Android is not far behind at the moment, but the devices have seen a sharp decline in sales with the iPhone 5 launch. Google's share of US smartphone sales had surpassed 65% just one year ago. While Windows and other smartphones linger at the bottom, BlackBerry maker RIM has seen a steady decline in US sales over the past two years.